On the edge

It was day 28 of lent and instead of going for my usual bike ride to find space to reflect, I headed down the coast with my board for a surf.
It was a reasonably large swell for Southport which meant the breaks were packed with surfers. I sat on the beach and pondered for a while what kind of approach I would take to getting past what looked like a terrifying shore break. I eventually got out there. Paddling out for me is not without a healthy sense of fear particularly in big and rough waves. It’s always comforting once you get to the group of other surfers and you can sit there on your board bobbing up and down knowing you’re reasonably safe beyond the break zone.
Surfers, ‘real surfers’ are usually adventurous types and will try anything at least once. It usually involves doing something daring. As we were waiting for a set of waves to come through I noticed two surfers paddling a little further out. They were heading for the Port Norlunga reef which was becoming more and more exposed with the outgoing tide. Large waves were crashing up against the reef making for spectacular viewing. These two surfers climbed up on the reef for a closer look, not because they were dared to, and not to gain respect, but purely because they could and because surfers love to live on the edge.
A big set came through and we all scrambled for positions. It’s always interesting to see which way people scramble. While some line themselves up to catch the wave, others paddle as fast as they can further out to sea to avoid the wave. This is what makes or breaks a ‘real surfer’. The waves that day were really sucking up and when you look down from the top it’s a long way to drop. All kinds of questions conger up in your mind as you discern whether you could make it or not.
In surfing circles there are playful ways of giving your mates a hard time if they continually dodge the wave. They are given name labels like grommet, scrubber, poser or try-hard. They wear these labels until that day they can paddle to the edge of that wave and take the plunge and not just a little one either, there has to be no hesitation and no fear shown when dropping into even the big monster waves. That day is called graduation day when they can call themselves surfers with integrity and not just pose as one.
Similarly, Jesus calls his disciples to pretty radical decisions daily. Jesus borders on the edge of acceptance never thinking twice about taking the daring plunge to stand with those who are marginalized or oppressed. It didn’t matter what people thought of him, what mattered was that these people had a chance to be liberated from their condition.
There are those who like to wear the label of being followers of Jesus, or in today’s terms ‘Christian’. From the time many followed Jesus on that final journey into Jerusalem, how many were really able to follow through with integrity?
To earn your right to be a Christian of integrity, is to be prepared to make radical decisions to follow Jesus daily.

Shalom Mark